Preparing your book to be sold

by Tim Kevan

In my previous articles, I’ve described how I got a book deal off the back of a
blog and explained why I decided to take on an agent. Now I’m going to throw
out my ideas about making the first pitch to either a publisher or an agent.
This is not in any sense to suggest that I have the answers (I definitely
haven’t) but if it helps give anyone inspiration or structure when approaching
this task then all to the good.

For
my part, as well as the initial chunk of content (around 20,000 words), I also
put together quite a sizeable summary of the book I was pitching. In order to
do this, you need to have a very clear idea of what you’re writing and who is
your intended audience. Once you’ve figured that out, I’d start with a half to
one page summary of the project as a whole. This is your main pitch and needs
to grab the reader from the start. Summarise what the book’s about, who it’s
for and what makes it different. Above all, remember that you’re selling, not
baring your soul. Next, I’d have a few sections giving more detail. Perhaps
start with the plot and a clear description of the so-called ‘narrative arc’. I
remember my own agentEuan
Thorneycroftemphasising this and my anticipating his look of satisfaction
when I mentioned it at the sale meeting with Bloomsbury (along the lines of
“well, of course, the narrative arc is…”).

After
this, give a quick summary of some of the main characters and again consider
the arc which each one takes as they progress through the book. You might then
want to write a section on the intended market and here you might give examples
of books which might be similar in genre to your own. I’d also suggest having a
section giving your own history and experience with particular reference to how
this influences your writing. Finally, I’d pick out some choice extracts from
your writing to help introduce the reader to your work. After that, get a good
friend to give it the once over before taking a deep breath and sending it off!

Tim Kevan is the author of ‘Law
and Disorder’ and ‘Law and Peace’ which are published by Bloomsbury.